1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to articles of clothing, and more particularly to leakproof and breathable hand coverings and methods of making the same.
2. Related Art
Outdoor activities, such as snowboarding, skiing, skating, biking, hiking, snowmobiling, hunting, firefighting, and construction working, to name a few, as well as other activities that expose the wearer to the elements and demand highly aerobic exertion, typically require garments having certain desired performance characteristics. For example, waterproof garments are desirable to keep the wearer dry. However, the waterproof garment should allow vapor from perspiration to readily pass through, therefore allowing the garment to xe2x80x9cbreathe.xe2x80x9d In addition, the garment should be lightweight to allow freedom of movement yet, with respect to cold weather activities, it should insulate. Attempts at meeting these sometimes competing characteristics have been implemented in a variety of garments produced by a variety of manufacturing methods.
One attempt at such a garment is a waterproof and breathable hand covering that keeps the wearer""s hands warm and dry while permitting perspiration to pass through. The most common such hand covering typically includes a three-piece construction having an outer liner, a waterproof and breathable insert and an insulating liner. However, the applicant has recognized that the resulting three-piece hand covering construction is bulky, restricting movement and therefore provides little dexterity.
Other hand coverings that do offer increased dexterity do not offer complete waterproofing. Such hand coverings typically include a two-piece construction having an outer waterproof and breathable shell, and an insulating liner. The outer shell is typically constructed of two or more pieces of waterproof and breathable material sewn together in a manner resulting in a non-leakproof seam about each finger cavity. The seam extends from the base of the finger cavity, up one side of the finger cavity through the tip of the finger cavity then down the other side and back to the base. The seam then continues about an adjacent finger cavity. The seams are then sealed using heat activated adhesive seam sealing tape fused to the seam using a tape sealing machine. However, the seam situated at the tip of the finger cavity cannot be efficiently taped and the seam situated at the base between adjacent finger cavities cannot be taped at all, primarily due to the construction of the tape sealing machine, as will now be explained.
In tape sealing machines, the sealing tape is pressed onto a flat seam of a garment by passage of the tape and the seam together between rotating rollers of the machine. The rollers are attached to mounts, such as axles or tractor-feed mechanisms, that axially extend to one side of the rollers. The tape and seam are pressed between the rollers in a manner such that one roller rolls along the seam on one side of the garment to apply the appropriate pressure to the tape and seam and the other roller rolls along the seam on the opposite side of the garment to act as a support. These tape sealing machines are effective for relatively flat seams because the garment may extend in the direction of the mounts. Thus, the mounts do not interfere with the garment. As a result, the seam and tape can easily pass through and be pressed by the rollers. When sealing the seams extending along the length of the finger cavity of a glove or mitten, for example, the finger cavity is flattened such that two layers of garment (i.e., each side of the finger cavity) pass through the rollers simultaneously, although only one side is sealed at a time. The finger cavity is then flipped over and the seam on the opposite side of the finger cavity is sealed, which also requires the finger cavity to be flattened such that both sides of the finger cavity pass through the rollers simultaneously. Here too, the roller mounts do not interfere with the flattened finger cavity.
As stated above, these tape sealing machines are limited with respect to taping relatively tightly radiused seams, such as those near the tips or the bases of the fingers of the glove or mitten. The tightly radiused seam cannot be pressed between the rollers, as is required for an effective seal. In this respect, neither the finger cavity nor the tightly radiused seam can be flattened in a manner to allow the support roller to be positioned behind the tightly radiused seam to support the seam. In addition, because a small cavity is typically associated with a tightly radiused seam, such as the small finger cavity associated with the tip thereof, the cavity cannot be placed over both the support roller and the associated mount in a manner to allow the support roller to support the tightly radiused seam. Therefore, with respect to the tightly radiused seam at the base, no seal may be formed. With respect to the tightly radiused seam at the tip, a secondary operation is required to seal the tip.
One such secondary operation is disclosed in U.K. Patent Application GB 2,176,741 (hereinafter referred to as ""741). The ""741 application recognizes that tape sealing machines utilizing two rollers are limited with respect to producing an effective seal at the tip of a finger cavity of a glove. The application therefore discloses a specialized apparatus to apply pressure to the sealing tape located at the tip. The apparatus includes a male tool, which substantially conforms to the tip of the finger cavity, and a complementary shaped female tool, both mounted to a press. Initially, heat activated adhesive tape is laid along the seam as far as possible up to the tightly radiused tip of the finger cavity and is pressed between rollers of a seam sealing machine. The glove is then transferred to the specialized apparatus disclosed in ""741 where the finger cavity is placed over the male tool and is pressed against the complimentary shaped female tool to apply localized pressure at the tip to adhere the tape.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The present invention is therefore directed to an article of clothing, such as a hand covering, and a method of making the same that overcomes the above noted and other disadvantages of prior articles of clothing and methods of producing such articles of clothing. The present invention results in an article of clothing that is leakproof and breathable with good dexterity. The article of clothing may be sealed by the same seam sealing machine to effectively seal all seams, thereby ensuring the leakproof characteristics of the article of clothing, while minimizing manufacturing costs. In this respect, the applicant has found that constructing a hand covering in a suitable manner, an example of which is described herein, the rollers and associated mounts of a tape sealing machine may be employed to render a tightly radiused seam amenable to sealing.
In one illustrative embodiment of the invention, a leakproof hand covering is provided. The hand covering includes a body cavity for covering a palm and a dorsum of a hand and at least one finger cavity, extending from the body cavity, for covering at least one finger. The finger cavity is formed of at least two segments of material each having a base adjacent the body cavity and a tip opposite the base. The at least two segments are joined with a seam between and including the base and the tip. The seam is joined in a non-leakproof manner. A seal is then formed over the seam between and including the base and the tip, rendering the seam leakproof.
In another illustrative embodiment of the invention, a hand covering is provided. The hand covering includes a palmar surface material having a palmar hand surface portion that is shaped to cover the palm of the hand. At least one palmar finger surface portion extends from the palmar hand surface portion and is shaped to cover the palmar finger surface of at least one finger. The hand covering also includes a dorsal surface material having a dorsal hand surface portion, shaped to cover the dorsum of the hand. At least one dorsal finger surface portion extends from the dorsal hand surface portion and is shaped to cover the dorsal finger surface of the at least one finger. The palmar and dorsal surface materials are joined together with at least a first seam. The dorsal finger surface and the palmar finger surface define at least a portion of one finger cavity. A second seam is formed in either the palmar surface material, the dorsal surface material, or both. Although not necessarily constituting part of this embodiment, the second seam results from a cut made in the respective surface portion of the finger cavity such that a component of a seam sealing machine may be placed within the finger cavity to seal the at least first seam.
In yet another embodiment of the invention, a method of making a leakproof article of clothing using a seam sealing machine is disclosed. The seam sealing machine has at least one roller for pressing against a seam. The method includes the steps of seaming at least two segments of material in a non-leakproof manner to form at least a portion of a cavity therebetween. A resulting non-leakproof seam has at least one tightly radiused seam portion. The method further includes applying a sealant to the at least one tightly radiused seam portion using the at least one roller of the seam sealing machine. Thus, the at least one tightly radiused seam portion of the non-leakproof seam becomes leakproof.
In still another embodiment of the invention, a method of making a hand covering is provided. The method includes the steps of seaming at least two segments of material to form a body cavity having a palmar surface for covering a palm of the hand and a dorsal surface for covering a dorsum of the hand and at least one finger cavity extending from the body cavity having at least a palmar surface and at least a dorsal surface respectively, for covering at least one finger. The seamed segments of material define at least a first seam. The finger cavity defines a base adjacent the body cavity and a tip area opposite the base. The method further includes the steps of cutting at least one surface of the finger cavity, and seaming the cut resulting from the cutting step to form a second seam. Although not necessarily constituting part of this embodiment, once the at least one surface is cut, a component of a seam sealing machine may be used to seal the at least first seam.
In another illustrative embodiment of the invention, a method of making a leakproof article of clothing using a seam sealing machine is disclosed. The seam sealing machine has first and second rollers for pressing a seam therebetween. The method includes the steps of seaming at least two segments of material in a non-leakproof manner to form at least a portion of a cavity therebetween. The resulting non-leakproof seam having at least one tightly radiused seam portion. The method further includes the step of inserting the first roller into the cavity to support the at least one tightly radiused seam against the second roller and applying a sealant to the at least one tightly radiused seam portion using the second roller, thereby causing at least the at least one tightly radiused seam portion of the non-leakproof seam to become leakproof.
In another illustrative embodiment of the invention, a hand covering is provided. The hand covering includes a body cavity for covering a palm and a dorsum of a hand and at least one finger cavity extending from the body cavity for covering at least one finger. The finger cavity is formed of palmar surface for covering a palmar surface of the finger and a dorsal surface for covering a dorsum surface of the finger. A non-leakproof seam joins the palmar and dorsal surfaces of the finger cavity. The non-leakproof seam has a tightly radiused portion. An access opening is configured and arranged to receive a tool that contacts the non-leakproof seam about the tightly radiused portion.
Further features and advantages of the present invention as well as the structure and method of making various embodiments of the present invention are described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings.